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AUSTIN—In the wake of raucous abortion-rights demonstrations at the state Capitol, Texas’ pro-life legislators said encouragement from their constituents makes a difference.
In the days leading up to the failed effort to pass the omnibus pro-life bill in the first special legislative session, the chants and shouts of burnt orange-clad abortion-rights protestors was an intimidating sight, one legislator admitted.
“We’re still human; it does affect you,” said state Rep. Greg Bonnen, R-Friendswood.
A neurosurgeon, Bonnen said he is at peace with his pro-life convictions, which are rooted in his faith and what he said was an academic study of the issue. He said his cohorts are firm in their position. But hearing the cries of protestors can give even a pro-life legislator pause.
“It never hurts to get that affirmation,” said Rep. Cindy Burkett, R-Garland, co-author of House Bill 2, the latest incarnation of the omnibus pro-life legislation. Burkett said even she has been guilty of not encouraging her representative politicians when they support positive bills.
In a show of support, Concerned Women for America (CWA) is organizing a rally for 7 p.m. Monday (July 8) on the front steps of the Capitol. As of Wednesday, featured speakers included Gov. Rick Perry, CWA Chief Executive Penny Nance, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee of FOX News Channel, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, parents of 19 children whose youngest was born at 25 weeks, Pastor Robert Jeffress of First Baptist Church of Dallas, and Marilyn Musgrave of the pro-life Susan B. Anthony List.
The Duggars star in the long-running “19 Kids & Counting” cable reality show on TLC.
Pro-life advocates were largely outnumbered during the closing hours of the first special session June 25 when abortion-rights demonstrators filled the Senate gallery and adjoining space, creating enough noise to help thwart a last-minute vote on the pro-life bill as abortion-friendly legislators asked a series of procedural questions to bog down business until the midnight deadline passed. An estimated 5,000 abortion-rights advocates again rallied July 1 at the opening of the second special session.
Bonnen said he was on the Senate floor when the gallery erupted with screams and catcalls in the closing minutes of the first special session, creating procedural chaos.
“What happened was completely unprecedented. That was an affront to the people of the state of Texas. That’s completely unacceptable,” Bonnen said.
In the second special session, pro-life leaders have called upon supporters to make their presence known in Austin. Pro-life legislators said the sight of an increasing number of their supporters in Austin in the opening days of the second special session was heartening.
“It does me good to see it,” said Burkett, the Garland Republican.
During the regular session of the 83rd Texas Legislature, Bonnen, an HB 2 co-author, said he rarely heard from pro-life supporters. But in the last week, communications from his district and across the state are calling for passage of HB 2.
Burkett bristled at the rhetoric of abortion-rights proponents in testimonies and protests. Signs reading “Gov. Perry Hates Women” and charges that the measure would force women to have “back-alley abortions” are unconscionable hyperbole, she argued. Critics have charged that Burkett cannot be trusted with women’s health.
“That’s a little over the top,” she said.
“It bothers me that a group of folks that may not be representative of Texans stopped the process,” said Burkett, alluding to accusations that some of the abortions-rights protestors were from national left-wing organizations.
Among the demonstrators on Monday and Tuesday, signs provided by Moveon.org, a left-wing group funded by billionaire George Soros, were very visible.
That’s why the July 8 rally and continued communication from constituents are important to steel the legislators’ resolve, Bonnen, the neurosurgeon and state representative, said.
“It will be reassuring to see that show of support; to let [legislators] know they are making a difference,” he added.
